Nature Cat
| Nature Cat | |
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| Genre |
Children's fiction Animation Adventure Comedy Musical |
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| Starring | |
| Country of origin | United States Canada |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 28 (list of episodes) |
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| Running time | 28 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Spiffy Pictures |
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| Original release | November 25, 2015 – present |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Nature Cat is an educational American-Canadian children's animated comedy adventure television series. The series premiered on November 25, 2015 on PBS Kids after the Wild Kratts Christmas special, "A Creature Christmas". The series is aimed at children aged 3 to 8 years old, following the adventures of four main characters: Nature Cat, Hal the Dog, Daisy the Bunny and Squeeks the Mouse. The series follows Fred, a house cat with dreams of exploring outside. Once his family leaves for the day, he transforms into Nature Cat, who cannot wait for backyard nature excursions. However, Fred has one problem: he has no instincts for nature. Through the learning experiences of the characters, this series intends to encourage children to similarly engage with and develop understanding of nature, a motif which draws inspiration from the book Last Child in the Woods. The show has been nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program". The series debut in November achieved nearly 3.7 million viewers, and by March it has achieved 69 million video streams across online platforms. As of October 2016, Nature Cat has been renewed for two more seasons.
With the exception of Kate Micucci, all of the cast members are better known for their work on the hit NBC comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live.
Nature Cat, 'Fred' (voiced by Taran Killam) - In the absence of his owners, Fred transforms into his alter-ego Nature Cat, narrating himself as such throughout the show. He is the main protagonist in leading a group of three other animals, frequently using the expressions "tally ho!" and "onward and yonward!" when initiating and continuing his adventures, lending to his optimistic and cheerful attitude in encouraging enthusiasm for the natural world. Taran Killam appraises Nature Cat as a positive character for children, describing his handling of adversity as “a great example of when you fall down you get back right up… and try it again”. He will occasionally drop from his ‘Nature Cat’ persona where, much like a regular housecat, he can suddenly become nervous or frightened. This can include having to interact with water, lamenting “why did it have to be water?”, but in these situations he ultimately ends up finding confidence to persist. When Fred turns into Nature Cat his clothes are all green.
Hal the Dog (voiced by Bobby Moynihan) - Characterised as being happy most of the time and very loyal to his friends, most of all for Nature Cat. He is always willing to partake in Nature Cat's outdoor excursions and share discoveries even if he initially doesn’t understand them. Hal is generally absent minded, becoming a source of comic relief where he may respond to others with non-sequiturs or muddled reasoning thought out loud. He can also become blissfully unaware of when he is taken into a dangerous situation, such as becoming lost in a city. His capabilities as a playful dog is portrayed as him being a character that is uninhibited in approaching messy or unpleasant situations, such as digging in the ground or smelling strong odors. This comes much to the benefit of others, where he is utilised in digging holes or locating in the environment by smell. He is sometimes accompanied by an inanimate chewing toy, “Mr. Chewinsky,” who he converses with when projecting his thoughts.
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